Ventura's parking meters have resulted in more empty spaces downtown than the city would like to see, so on Monday night the City Council will consider cutting the price of parking in half on side streets.

The city's goal is to have 85 percent of the street spaces full during peak weekend hours. A study conducted last summer by an outside consultant found that while the metered spaces on Main and California streets met that goal, those on other streets downtown were well under the benchmark. For example, on the afternoon of Saturday, July 16, the overall occupancy rate for metered spaces was 77.5 percent, according to the study. On Main Street, 94.8 percent of the spaces were full, but on side streets running north to south, 66.2 percent of the spaces were taken.

To encourage more people to park on side streets, the city's Downtown Parking Advisory Committee recommends reducing the price on side streets from $1 an hour to 50 cents an hour. Parking on Main and California streets would remain at $1 an hour.

The City Council is expected to vote on that recommendation Monday. At the same time, it will consider another recommendation from the parking committee: allow businesses to designate one or two vehicles that are used for business purposes, such as deliveries, to exceed the posted four-hour and 24-hour time limits on some of the free parking lots downtown.

"We've always allowed that informally, and waived tickets when they've occurred, and this is just a way for us to formalize that without having to worry about tickets," said Tom Mericle, the city's transportation manager.

The proposed price cut, Mericle said, is in line with the original mission of the parking meters, which the city installed in 2010 with the stated goal of improving the flow of downtown traffic and opening up more spaces in front of shops and restaurants. The meters also are meant to pay for increased police patrols and other services downtown.

Cutting prices for the less-desirable spaces on side streets makes sense, said Kevin Clerici, executive director of Downtown Ventura Partners, an association of downtown business owners. Clerici, a member of the Parking Advisory Committee, said he supported the price cut when it came before the committee in December.

"The spots on Main are the premium spots, so you pay a premium for those, and you get to choose if you want to pay that premium," he said. "If you don't, you just have to walk a block."

Clerici said many downtown merchants are happy with the meters and are seeing faster turnover on the spaces in front of their stores, which brings more customers inside.

Carla Bonney, one of the most vocal opponents of the parking meters, said she thinks lower prices on side streets "is a little bit more sensible," but she still thinks the meters were a mistake. Bonney was one of the leaders of a petition drive that gathered enough signatures to put a measure on the ballot to remove the meters. However, a judge later ruled it ineligible.

"It reminds me of a dam with water pouring out of the holes and they're plugging the holes," Bonney said.

The city also lowered prices a few months after the meters were installed, eliminating a higher fee of $1.50 an hour after the first two hours.

The City Council meets at 6 p.m. Monday at Ventura City Hall, 501 Poli St. More information on the parking issue and other topics on the agenda is available online at http://tinyurl.com/7n9hzdy.